Bahamasair flight lands safely in Nassau after landing gear malfunction

Bahamas: A Bahamasair flight from Abaco to New Providence that was scheduled to take 35 minutes had turned into a two-hour ordeal for those on-board after an incident involving the plane’s primary landing gear.

As a result, the flight crew had to circle the capital before being able to use a secondary system to make a safe landing, leaving many passengers rattled and fearing the worst as the plane circled the airport multiple times before the landing gear was deployed.

According to reports, the flight which was due to depart from Marsh Harbour on Friday morning had been registered as UP136 and was scheduled to land in New Providence when the emergency situation developed.

Bahamasair reported that the flight crew took the initiative to activate the plane’s secondary landing gear system and other emergency measures as a precautionary measure and that the aircraft was able to make a safe landing without requiring emergency services.

The airline reported that several passengers who survived the emergency situation shared their relief and recounted the incident following their arrival at the Nassau airport. An Abaco resident identified as Jade Adderly had described the scare after he and his wife plus their six-year-old son had been on board the ill-fated flight.

Jade stated that he became concerned when he realized the landing gear system had malfunctioned and failed to deploy as he explained, “the plane was going fine until we were turning around New Providence.”

He further recalled that the plane had made several attempts to land before the landing gear deployed but he added, “the nose went down and he went to land but we went back up in the air again.” He continued, “I was getting scared and I was praying hard because a lot was running through my mind for like an hour and 45 minutes."

Yes, I was praying. I was praying. As long as I was in the air, we probably were good but thinking about the tragedy that occurred in Andros, I say, “Lord, you mean it’s how we go.

Meanwhile, Jade noted that they had to travel further out to sea before making yet another attempt to land while other passengers likely slept through the situation.

The plane eventually touched down at the Nassau airport, where emergency vehicles were waiting for the aircraft as the pilot addressed the passengers and informed them of the situation. Bahamasair released a statement regarding the emergency situation on the ill-fated flight on Friday.

Notably, the airline reported that the flight crew handled the emergency situation with skill and professionalism and that the aircraft’s primary landing gear malfunctioned as it prepared to land. The airline added that the faulty system had since been repaired and the aircraft returned to service.